Ice hockey garment

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a unitary hockey garment comprising a body portion adapted to snugly fit around the trunk of the body of the wearer from about the waist downwards said body portion including a portion adapted to grip the trunk of the body of the wearer forming an undergarment portion and a pair of leg portions, each leg portion extending from said body portion and having means at the free end thereof for gripping the foot of the wearer to maintain the leg portion under tension on the leg of the wearer forming an outer garment portion and detachable retaining means for releasably retaining a protective cup or plate in said crotch area, said leg portion including a pocket dimensioned for removable accommodation of a shin pad and disposed for location of the shin pad opposite the shin of the wearer.

Quinn Jan. 29, 1974 ICE HOCKEY GARMENT [76] Inventor: Peter H. Quinn, 1 101-C Falaise Rd.,

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada [22] Filed: J Mar. 13, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 233,897

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 13,939, Feb. 25,

1970, abandoned.

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data [58] Field of Search 2/23, 22, 24,2, 224 R, 225, 2/226, 231, 232, 237, 78 A-78 D, 78 R, 247, 250, 67, 238, 69; 128/158, 159, 165, 132

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,698,674 1/1929 Crego et al. 2/227 1,381,254 6/1921 Thorp 128/160 1,229,850 6/1917 Zetosch 128/159 1,602,454 10/1926 Riddell 2/23 1,689,558 10/1'928 Patten 2/22 1,920,943 8/1933 Thompson 2/240 2,088,302 7/1937 McKeever... 128/159 2,336,222 12/1943 Clark 128/159 2,757,381 8/1956 Cottier et a1 2/237 3,209,370 10/1965 Miller 2/232 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 16,974 8/1901 Great Britain 128/159 3,113 2/1908 Great Britain 2/22 1,071,516 3/1954 France 2/22 9,721 6/1891 Great Britain 2/224 Primary Examiner-James R. Boler Attorney, Agent, or Firm-John W. Malley et a1.

[ 5 7] ABSTRACT The present invention relates to a unitary hockey garment comprising a body portion adapted to snugly fit around the trunk of the body of the wearer from about the waist downwards said body portion including a portion adapted to grip the trunk of the body of the wearer forming an undergarment portion and a pairof leg portions, each leg portion extending from said body portion and having means at the free end thereof for gripping the foot of the wearer to maintain the leg portion under tension on the leg of the wearer forming an outer garment portion and detachable retaining means for releasably retaining a protective cup or plate in said crotch area, said leg portion including a pocket dimensioned for removable accommodationof a shin pad and disposed for location of the shin pad opposite the shin of the wearer.

7 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTED JAN 29 I974 SHEET 2 [1F 3 mumm1umulmmmw FIG. 4

FIG. 3

PATENTEB JAN 2 91974 SHEET 3 BF 3 FIG. 5

ICE HOCKEY GARMENT This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 13,938, filed Feb. 25, 1970, now abandoned.

This invention relates to sporting apparel- More particularly, one aspect of this invention relates to a one-piece unitary hockey garment; and a further aspect of the present invention relates to a method of producing such a garment. I

Conventional, present day equipment for a hockey player includes separate hockey socks, worn over shin and knee protectors, a garter belt for suspending and holding the hockey socks in position on'the wearers legs, a separate underwear garment to maintain at least the lower portion of the players body relatively warm and to absorb perspiration, a separate jock strap or athletic support which conventionally includes a rigid protector cup or plate. In addition, the player has to emtioning each pad on the front of the leg in a hockey stocking, and securing them in place with bands or tapes which are tightly bound about the exterior of the hockey stocking. Depending on the type of shin or the like pad employed, several spaced-apart bands or tapes may be used to maintain the protective pads in position inside each hockey stocking.

The total number of individual pieces of protective equipment and clothing orv garments and accessories that any hockey player is required to wear, some of which are indicated above, is considerable and as is well known by those playing the game of hockey, the amount of time involved in dressing-up for each game or practice is quite lengthy. Each individual garment or item or apparel must be separately placed and positioned on the wearers body. Additionally each item of protective equipment must be secured by appropriate means where required. In addition to being quite timeconsuming when dressing-up, the total number of individual garments required imposes a further problem where one considers that for any team of players, the total number of individual garments for a whole team can be twenty times or more than those of an individual player. In addition there are replacement or additional sets of the same individual garments and items of apparel which are held in reserve.

ln the prior art, various proposals have been made in an attempt to reduce the number of garments and accessories that an individual ice hockey player must wear, to eliminate some of the problems associated with the large total number and volume of such garments and accessories associated with a team of players. However, despite numerous'proposals, none have been successful and adopted by any players, for one reason or another. Thus, as is evident by the numbers and type of individual components, garments and accessories worn by hockey players today, the prior art proposals have not provided any solution to the problem. Today, the total number of garments and accessories worn by an individual ice hockey player is substantially no less than the number that was worn many years ago.

The present invention is a novel structure which reduces the total number of garments and accessories an ice hockey player is required to wear, while at the same time, incorporating the function of the separate individual garments and accessories, which the garment of the present invention replaces, into a single unitary garment. Further, the unitary garment of the present invention provides practical solution where the prior art proposed solutions failed to do so.

More particularly, the above problems have been overcome by providing a unitary one-piece garment which on the one hand, forms a garment adapted to be worn adjacent the body and provides an inner and outer garment portion for that part of the body and at the same time, an outer garment portion to be worn over protective leg equipment. One form of the product according to the present invention is characterized in that the unitary one-piece structure is made of flexible material and includes a body portion adapted to be worn about the lower trunk area of the body conforming generally to the contours thereof and forming generally an undershort or undergarment component of said garment, the body portion further including an integral crotch portion, a pair of leg portions integrally connected to said body portion each adapted to surround and conform generally to the contours of a leg of the body, the leg portions forming the outer surface of the outer garment portion of the structure, means integrally connected to each of said leg portions for at least partially surrounding each foot of the body and for positioning said leg portions on the legs of a body, and detachable retaining and protective means releasably retaining a protective cup or plate in said crotch area.

In greater detail, the above unitary one-piece garment combines the function of several of the separate individual clothing or protective components presently employed by ice hockey players into a single unitary garment which functions as both an inner and outer garment in different areas of the body. In this respect, a particularly preferred embodiment of the above form of the garment is where each leg portion includes means for releasably receiving and retaining a shin pad or the like protective pad, to permit insertion and removal of the protective shin pad inside of each leg portions and adjacent the wearers leg. A desired form of this embodiment is wherein said releasable retaining means comprises first means for releasably retaining and positioning the protective leg or shin pads, employed in conjunction with second means for adjustably fastening the protective leg pads to the respective legs of the wearer. A simple and economical expedient for the first means for retaining and positioning the protective leg pads comprises a pocket extending about a portion of the circumference of the leg portions of the garment, which pocket has a width and depth sufficient to releasably retain the lower portion of the protective leg pad. Thus, a pocket depth in the order of from one to three inches or more and a width (in the circumferential direction) of about three to four inches (depending on the size of the protective leg pad) had been found sufficient for most purposes for adult size garments. Likewise, a similar simple and economic expedient for the second means for retaining the protective leg pad in juxtaposition with the leg of the wearer comprises a pair of spaced apart straps fixedly connected to the interior of the leg portions in a spaced apart manner, each pair of straps of each leg portion having a length sufficient to engage each other to permit the same to be releasably secured about the back of the wearers leg. Such straps may simply be elongated thin straps of any suitable material or, if desired, one or both of such straps of each pair of straps may be made in part or in total, of releasably adhering material such as that marketed under the Trade Mark VELCRO. In a still further form, such straps may be a single continuous strap with their free ends fixedly attached in each leg portion of the garment, the material from which the strap is made being a flexible extensible material, so that in use, the wearer may simply place his foot through the continuous strap and place the protective leg pad in position with the flexible extensible strap retaining it in juxtaposition with the wearers leg.

Although the above-describedmeans for releasably retaining the protective leg pads, or shin pads in position are indicated as being located interiorly of the leg portions, wherein according to conventional practice, the protective leg pads are worn interiorly and adjacent the legs, they may be located on the exterior surface of the respective leg portions, particularly for garments for children. a

In the garment of the present invention, the body portion forming that part of garment which is adapted to be worn as an inner or under garment preferably forms a continuous body encircling section. This body encircling section preferably extends from approximately the waist down to the lower trunk portion of the body, and desirably includes an elasticized upper band portion, either integal with or separately secured to the upper area for positioning the under garment portion about the waist of the wearer Thus, the top or upper area of the undergarment portion is provided with suitable means for retaining the undergarment portion in juxtaposition with the body of the wearer. Preferably,

, such means in the form of an elasticized insert inner band or the like, permits adjustability of the waist portion to this end, there may be provided a belt or the like formed of such elasticized material either separately or incorporated into the undergarment construction whereby the degree of tightness or fit for different people can be adjusted individually as desired. In one preferred form the upper portion of the undergarment part of the garment may includea pair of straps of nonextensible material, each of which is fixedly secured to the garment, and which contains releasable engaging means e.g. such as the material Velcro. Alternately, an elasticized waist band may simply be included as part of the garment.

As previously mentioned, the undergarment portion includes an integral crotch portion, with detachable releasable retaining and protective means for releasably retaining a rigid protective cup or plate in such means in the crotch area to protect that area of the body of the hockey player. To this end,. according to one form of the invention, the detachable releasable retaining means may comprise a pocket or pouch integrally connected to and accommodated within the upper undergarment portion in the general area of the crotch portion; the said pocket being of a size sufficient to releasably receive and accommodate a rigid protective plate or cup. To this end, the pocket preferably is ofa generally triangular shape of suitable continuous flexible material with the top edge or portion of the triangularly shaped pocket being opened to permit insertion and withdrawal of the rigid protective plate or cup. Straps or bands are attached to the lower end of the pocket for attachment to the undergarment portion to maintain and secure the pocket in position generally in the front and crotch area of the garment when worn. The pocket is also fastened along its top edge of the upper undergarment portion by suitable means. The means for securing the retaining means including the pocket or pouch to the garment may be by any suitable conventional means, as for example, stitching, adhesives, etc.

In a preferred embodiment, the releasable retaining means may comprise first engaging means to releasably engage second cooperating engaging means for detachably mounting the retaining means including a protective plate or cup in the crotch portion of the undergarment area. In this arrangement, the upper undergarment portion of the garment will therefore include fastening means (e.g., dome fasteners, snap fasteners, and the like) operating in conjunction with mating engaging means used in conjunction with the retaining means securing the latter in a releasable manner to the crotch area. Dome fasteners may be located along the top edge of the generally V-shaped pocket to secure the pocket in position at the front of the garment by cooperating with dome mating dome fastener attached to the inner surface of the front of the undergarment por-' tion or to the inner surface of the waistband at the front. Dome fasteners are also located in the ends of the bands or straps attached to the lower part of the pocket remote from the pocket to cooperate with spaced apart mating fasteners located on the inner surface of the garment at the back or on the inner waist band at the back. This provides for the detachable retaining means and pocket to be securely held in position in the front and crotch area of the wearer. It also provides for the ready removal of such pocket for laundering and the like without the necessity of laundering the complete garment. This is particularly useful for hockey teams where the practice is to launder such items as athletic supports after each practice or each time such althletic support is worn. The easy removal of such item from the hockey garment provides considerable advantages to professional ice hockey players and also to younger boys whereby the detachable pouch or pocket may be easily removed for laundering, for inserting the rigid protective cup and may be replaced when worn out.

More particularly, the detachable pocket may be in the form of a conventional jock strap or athletic supportwhich permits detachable releasable insertion of a rigid protective cup into the pocket of the athletic support. This latter arrangement also has the advantage that the athletic support may be readily removed for laundering purposes.

If desired, in the above-described embodiment where the retaining means and pocket to accommodate a protective plate or cup is not a separate component, there may be employed a separate one-piece jock strap structure having a pocket for retaining the protective plate or cup, (preferably in a releasable manner) which structure is fixedly connected to the inner upper undergarment portion of said garment. This arrangement may be employed in conjunction with the undergarment portion of the hockey garment of the present invention wherein the body-encircling strap and the rear straps are secured to the undergarment portion near or at the top thereof at the front and back respectively whereby the pocket and body encircling straps become integral components of the undergarment and fixedly attached to it. In this latter arrangement, the bodyencircling strap and two rear straps are made of a flexible, preferably elastic material. They may be fixedly secured thereto by, fo example, stitching. On the other hand, the straps in addition to being secured at the rear of the undershort portion, may be secured partially or totally about the circumference of the undershort portion.

The protective cup or plate which may be used with the garment of the present invention may be any suitable rigid conventional type normally employed by hockey players or other athletes for protection of a player's genitals. Typically, they are formed of light weight materials; normally'of metal or glass fiber, and molded or contoured to conform generally to the contours of the body and may include edges covered by rubber or a type of foam rubber to prevent injury or irritation. I

In the garment of the present invention, the means integrally connected to each of the leg portions, for at least partially surrounding each foot of the body, may be in the form of a strap or a knitted stirrup connected to each leg portion or integrally forming an extension of said leg portion which is adapted to extend downwardly on either lateral side of the foot and beneath the arch of the foot. For the sake of comfort, each strap is preferably ofa relatively soft material of width and type of material to easily fit over thearch portion of the wearer. As such, each strap may be of a width typically of from I to 2 inches or thereabouts, with the free ends of the straps being integrally connected to th lateral terminal parts of the leg portionsfThese straps may, in effect, be continuations of the leg portions or alternately, may be separate straps connected to the leg portions by suitable means, as for example, stitching, adhesives, and the like. In an alternate form in place of the strap portions, there may be employed a substantially complete foot portion forming an extension of the leg portion. The complete foot portion may be a continuously knitted extension of each leg portion. In either of the above cases, both function to position the leg portions of the garment of the present invention so as to aid in the positioning of the total garment on the body of the wearer, and further, to properly position any protective leg pads which are employed by the leg portions being under tension.

The one-piece garment of the present invention described above, may further include, if desired, an upper body or vest portion adapted to clothe the upper body of a hockey player i.e. the chest, arms and back. This upper vest portion may be integrally connected to, or separately attachable to, the above-described garment. If incorporated into the structure of the present invention, the vest portion will include an aperture or open front portion, as in a shirt style, to permit the hockey player to get into the garment. In this case, there will be included buttons, a zipper or the like for securing the garment about the players upper body.

A preferred garment of the present invention incorporates, in the leg portions as an outergarment for the game of ice hockey, a structure which permits the protective leg or shin pads to be worn without the necessity of auxiliary straps or the like. To this end, such a preferred garment includes proportioned leg areas ofa size such that when a protective leg pad is incorporated into the means for releasably retaining such a leg pad, or when means for releasably retaining such leg pad is not employed, each leg portion per se is effective to maintain the protective leg pad in the desired position with the required degree of tightness for fitting. To this end, each leg portion is preferably made of elasticized, flexible, or knitted stretch material at least in the area where the protective leg pad is to be located, or more preferably the complete leg portions forming the outer portions of the garment are made of such material.

The mateiral from which the garment of the present invention is constructed can be any suitable material having the desired properties and characteristics required. In general, such material may be any natural or synthetic material, typical examples of which are wool, nylon, polyesters, blends or mixtures of such materials either woollen or knitted, etc. The material per se may be of a woven, non-woven or knitted construction.

In one preferred embodiment of the invention, the material forming the garment may be of different types or different thicknesses where it is desired to impart different characteristics to different portions of the garment. Thus, the upper body undergarment portion of the garment is made from a different fiber type or knitted type than the leg portions forming the outer portion of the garment. In the latter case where no additional outer garment is worn, increased material thicknesses and different fiber and knitted types and configurations may be used to impart additional thermal insulation properties and strength to hold the leg protector in position and further to resist skate cuts and snagging of the material. Still further, the portions of the garment exposed to greater stress and strain and wear (as in the front knee area) may include fibers ofa further type or a different knit for imparting greater wear resistance. By way of specific example, in those portions of the garment from the point at which the hockey pants of a player do not cover, to the proximity of knitted foot portion, may be made of woven or knitted blends of wool and synthetic fibers to provide increased warmth while the upper body portion may be made from a material which does not impart the same degree of warmth characteristics (eg a synthetic fiber only or cotton) and be made of different woven or knitted material or blends of wool and synthetic fibers.

Where the garment is made from a material of a woven nature, the particular woven or knitted characteristics may vary so that the garment may contain areas of a suitable relatively open-mesh construction while other areas are of a suitable relatively tight construction. This feature may be advantageously employed where, for example, it is desired to increasethe ventilation of the upper body portion when the garment is worn adjacent the skin'ofa player. In a still further advantageous form, the garment of the present invention can be tailored to provide for different types of uses by employing the above-described variations in the garment construction. Thus,'for example, where it is desired to provide garments for use in mainly outdoor areas, the garment may have a heavier weight and/or a different fiber or knitted construction to provide for increased warmth as compared to a similar garment according to the present invention which is intended for mainly indoor use. In the latter case, where temperature and warmth requirements are not as critical a more open-mesh or a different fiber or knitted type may be employed.

The material forming the pockets or pouch for the protective plate or cup, in the embodiments where such components are included as pockets per se, may be of the same type of material described above, or alternately of a different type. For example, these pockets may be of a lighter material or of an elasticized type of material (such as that marketed under the Trade Mark LYCRA) as is the case with th pockets for retaining the protective leg pads in the leg portions of the garment.

In one form of the garment as contemplated by the present invention, there may be provided a garment constructed of stretchable elastic knitted or woven material wherein a given garment structure will suit or fit a plurality of different sizes of men and boys. Thus, for example, one or' two different garment sizes of elasti- 'cized or stretchable material may be employed for adults similarly, one or two stretchable structures can be provided to cover the different size ranges for children. In this manner, there is obtained a garment conforming closely to the contours of the body of the wearer, which not only is comfortable to wear, but also provides maximum assistance for retaining the protective leg pads in position, and further the protective cup or plate in position as desired.

The garments of the present invention can be manufactured by, for example, constructing the undergar ment portion, the integrally connected leg portions and the foot portions (where the latter is included in place of a strap or stirrup portion) on a continuous knitting machine. Thereafter, the appropriate pockets and additional preferred components can be incorporated in subsequent finishing operations. Alternately, the garment may be constructed on a knitting machine in which the leg portions are not completely sewn together throughout the length of the leg portions, in which case, the pockets may be incorporated into the leg portions by e.g. sewing and if desired, when additional straps are employed to maintain the protective leg pads in juxtaposition with the hockey players leg, they may be incorporated between the seams of the leg portions when the latter are sewn together to form a final garment.

As will be evident from the above, the unitary onepiece garments of the present invention possess many advantageous features, in addition to eliminating individual components or garments which have heretofore been necessary. Thus, the hockey player wearing the garment of the present invention no longer needs to be bothered with employing two separate hockey socks whereby dressing-up time for practice and games is considerably reduced. Moreover, the garments of the present invention are comfortable and snug to wear and do not impede a hockey players movements. The elimination of a separate garter belt to suspend conventional hockey socks gives the player a more comfortable feeling without any restrictions imposed by garters or the like. This unique construction'helps prevent the loss of a single hockey sock, rendering the remaining sock useless and also helps prevent the loss of the separate athletic support or jock strap worn by hockey players. In areas where the garment of the present invention may be worn on outdoor arenas or rinksQit permits the hockey player, particularly younger hockey players, to remain warm as it provides warmth as an undergarment under conventional hockey pants.

Younger hockey players, particularly boys from age six to approximately 16 or 17 have difficulty wearing a conventional garter belt to hold up hockey socks as such youthful boys generally have small hips. This construction overcomes this problem for youthful hockey players and prevents the legs of such players from becoming cold and irritated as conventional hockey socks fall down by providing a snug fitting garment which does not fall down and also provides warmth for the upper leg and body portion of the wearer.

Further, the present invention has the added economic advantage since frequentlylost individual components (as for example one hockey sock) previously necessitated the complete purchase of a new set of garments. In this case, however, since several garments are composed into an individual one-piece garment, this problem is overcome.

Having thus generally described the invention, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, illustrating preferred embodiments and in which:

FIG. 1 is a front view of a one-piece unitary garment according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the garment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front view of a one-piece unitary garment according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a side view of the garment of FIG. 3 having a leg portion partly broken away; and

FIG. 5 is a section taken along the line 55 of FIG. 4.

Referring initially to FIGS. 1 to 4, there is illustrated a one-piece hockey garment comprising an upper undergarment portion and a lower outer garment portion according to the present invention made of flexible stretchable woven or knitted material, as for example, nylon, dacron, lycra or wool, or mixtures or blends thereof. The unitary one-piece garment includes a snug fitting upper portion adapted to be worn as an undergarment about the lower trunk area indicated by reference numeral 1. This component, in the embodiment illustrated, includes an upper stretchable waist band portion of suitable elastic material indicated by reference numeral 2 which is fixedly secured to the undergarment component by stitching or the like. The waist band 2 is of a type of elasticized material and may contain fastening means indicated by reference numeral 3 permitting the waist band to be adjusted to different degrees of tightness as desired by a wearer. As mentioned hereinbefore, the upper portion of the garment having the waist band 2 may be an integral part of this component. This undergarment component of the garment also includes a snug fitting crotch portion indicated generally by reference numeral 16, which crotch portion is continuous with and forms part of the continuous undershorts component of the garment.

The above-described undergarment portion of the garment is adapted to be wornin juxtaposition with the body surface of the wearer; however, if desired, conventional underwear may also be employed should it be desired.

Integrally connected to the undergarment component of the garment, are a pairof leg portions indicated generally by reference numeral 5 forming the outer garment portion of the hockey garment. Each leg portion extends downwardly commencing at 4 from the crotch area to a point approximately adjacent the wearers ankle. The leg portions are so constructed so as to generally conform to the contours of the hockey players leg.

The undergarment portion 1 extends down each leg portion to approximately the mid point of the thigh portion 4 which is above the point at which the hockey pants of a player do not cover and is desirably made of a lighter woven or knitted material than the remaining outer portion of the garment shown as 5. The weight and gauge of the undergarment portion may vary if the garment is worn on outside or inside hockey arenas but must provide some warmth and also absorb perspiration but is of a different construction than outer garment portion 5.

The leg portions commencing at 4 form that part of the hockey garment which is adapted to be worn as an outer garment. To this end, these leg portions are preferably made from a heavier woven or knitted material to possess better thermal properties than the undergarment component 1 and to be generally stronger to assist in maintaining the leg protectors in position. This is so particularly where the garment is of a type adapted to be worn outdoors. Still further, in the embodiment illustrated, the leg portions 4 may also include areas of reinforce material indicated generally by reference numeral 9, positioned generally in the knee area which receives a greater stress strain than the balance of the garment.

A further component of the garment of the present invention is means integrally connected to each of the leg portions for positioning the leg portions in the proper orientation about a wearers leg and maintaining the leg portions under tension. The garment illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4 includes a leg portion having a stirrup or strap portion 6 adapted to pass around a foot of the wearer; the stirrup 6 being fixedly connected (by stitching or the like) to the respective lateral sides of the leg portion 5 or being continuously an extension of the leg portions 5 either in the woven or knitted material as shown at 12. When the leg portions 5 are fitted over the leg and shin protectors, each leg portion is under a small tension as a result of the stirrups 6 to assist in maintaining the leg portionsto fit snugly over the leg protectors or shin pads so they will retain their position on the front of the legs of. the wearer. Tapes or straps may also be used in addition on the outside of the leg portions to cause the leg protectors to retain their snug fitting position on the front of the legs of the wearer. 7

Still further, in accordance with this invention, the garment includes a detachable releasable retaining means 7 for releasably retaining a rigid protective cup or plate 8 of a jock strap in the crotch area 10 of the undergarment portion. The particular embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4 includes 3 male dome fastening means indicated by reference numeral 9, which are fixedly secured in spaced-apart relationship to the band 2 of the undergarment component. These 3 male dome fastening elements 9 cooperate with 3 mating female dome elements located in spaced-apart relationship on a pocket or pouch of a type of conventional athletic support or jock strap shown generally at 7.

The dome fastening elements 9 are fixedly mounted on the upper edge of the pocket or pouch forming a pocket for receiving a protective plate or cup, indicated generally by reference numeral -8, and which may be removed from the pocket to permit laundering of the latter. Fixedly connected to the pocket at its lower end for receiving the protective cup are two body or leg-encircling straps of elasticized material, indicated generally by reference numeral 10. The body or legencircling straps in turn, carry on their end surface,

similar male and female dome or fastener engaging means for detachably mounting such straps preferably at the rear of the waist band 2 to assist in positioning pocket and protector at the front of the wearer. As a result the pocket 7 and straps 10 are completely detachable from the garment and may be laundered separately and replaced easily when worn out. Further the protective cup or plate 8 may be easily removed from the pocket 7 when the pocket is attached to the garment or when it is removed as the pocket is open along its top edge as shown at Ill.

Alternately, the body or leg-encircling straps may be connected to the undergarment component, at the rear thereof, by stitching so as to fixedly secure the same in a permanent position. Preferably, the body or legencircling straps are secured to the waist band by means of Velcro fasteners, which permit the pocket to be separately removed from the entire garment.

Referringnow to FIGS. 3 and 4, there is shown an alternate embodiment of the present invention wherein to accommodate protective leg pads, or shin pads, each leg portion 5 is provided at its lower end thereof, with a pocket formed between the outer layer of the garment and an additional layer of lighter flexible woven or knitted material indicated generally by reference numeral 13, into which the protective leg or shin pads may be inserted and retained in place. In the embodiment illustrated, the pockets formed between the outer layer of the leg portion and the material 13, indicated by reference numeral 13' are shown as extending from adjacent the arch of the wearers foot to a point below the knee level of the wearer; in this manner the deep pockets 13 will accommodate and releasably retain conventional leg or shin protectors which include a shin guard element and a kneecap protector. As explained hereinbefore, the pockets may be of a much shallower depth and, may include auxiliary means for retaining the upper portion of conventional protective leg elements in juxtaposition with the wearers leg. Still further, if desired, such elements may be used to provide supplemental control for positioning the leg protecting elements in the pockets; in the drawings there are included a pair of straps (which in the embodiment illustrated) are in the form of spaced-apart fasteners 14 capable of being tightened around the lower knee and calf portions of the respective legs of the wearer to permit tightening of the protective leg pad against the wearers leg. The fasteners 14 may, for example, be of Velcro material secured by stitching or the like to the leg portions 5 at one point, the free ends of the fasteners 8 being capable of being moved-or tightened. Further the fasteners may be tapes of fabric or suitable material either fastened to the leg portions 5 or as separate tapes to retained the pad snugly to the leg of the wearer.

Referring to FIG. 5, taken along the lines 5-5 of FIG. 1 there is shown the athletic support generally U- shaped pocket or pouch 7 as it is worn inside the garment to accommodate a rigid protector cup or plate 8 of a conventional type necessary for the protection of hockey players. The pocket is detachably mounted inside the undergarment portion at the front just at the crotch area and above by means of 3 dome fasteners 9 located on the upper elasticized band of the garment and the top edge of the pocket in spaced relationship. The cup may be releasably removed from the pocket as the pocket has a opening 11 along its top edge.

The encircling straps are fastened to the bottom end of the pocket and encircle the outer edge of the wearers legs and fasten at their ends by means of dome fasteners 15 located on the upper band 2 at the back at 2 locations.

The pocket 7 is easily detached from the undergarment portion for easy laundering and replacement.

It will be understood that various modifications can be made to the above-described preferred embodiments, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Further, as will be seen from the embodiments illustrated in the drawings, the previously described advantages may be readily and economically attained by the structure of the present invention.

1 claim:

1. A unitary ice hockey garment of knitted elastic textile material forming a combined inner and outer wear garment said garment having a body portion adapted to be snugly worn about the lower trunk area of the body and conforming to the contours thereof, an integral crotch area associated with said body portion, a pair of leg portions integrally connected to said body portion each adapted to surround one leg of a wearers body, said body portion forming an inner garment portion of the hockey garment said leg portions forming the outer garment portion of the hockey garment and being of a heavier textile material than said body portion, each said leg portions having sufficient elasticity to accommodate an ice hockey pad between its inside surface and the wearers leg with said leg portions gripping the wearers legs, a foot portion connected to each of the leg portions adapted to at least partially surround the foot of the wearer and maintain each leg portion under tension and a pocket detachably attached to said body portion of said garment forreleasably retaining a protective cup or plate in said crotch area.

2. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein said foot portion connected to each of said leg portions comprises a strap fixedly connected to opposed lateral sides of each leg portion, the strap of each leg portion being adapted to extend beneath the foot of the wearer.

3. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein said foot portion connected to each of said leg portions is adapted to substantially cover the foot of a wearers leg, said foot portion being integrally connected to each leg portion and forming an extension thereof.

4. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein each leg portion includes on its inside surface a pocket for receiving and releasably retaining an ice-hockey pad.

5. The garment as defined in claim 1 wherein each leg portion includes on its inside surface a pocket for releasably receiving and retaining an ice-hockey pad, permitting ready insertion and removal of the pad interiorly of the leg'portions of said garment adjacent the wearers leg and fastening means for adjustably fasten ing the pad in contact with a wearers leg.

6. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein the pocket for releasably retaining a protective cup or plate is open along its top edge detachably connected to the front of the undergarment portion of said garment, said pocket having two elastic leg encircling straps attached thereto at its lower edge detachably connected at their ends remote from said pocket to the rear of said undergarment portion.

7. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein said pocket and straps are detachably connected with dome fasteners. 

1. A unitary ice hockey garment of knitted elastic textile material forming a combined inner and outer wear garment said garment having a body portion adapted to be snugly worn about the lower trunk area of the body and conforming to the contours thereof, an integral crotch area associated with said body portion, a pair of leg portions integrally connected to said body portion each adapted to surround one leg of a wearer''s body, said body portion forming an inner garment portion of the hockey garment said leg portions forming the outer garment portion of the hockey garment and being of a heavier textile material than said body portion, each said leg portions having sufficient elasticity to accommodate an ice hockey pad between its inside surface and the wearer''s leg with said leg portions gripping the wearer''s legs, a foot portion connected to each of the leg portions adapted to at least partially surround the foot of the wearer and maintain each leg portion under tension and a pocket detachably attached to said body portion of said garment for releasably retaining a protective cup or plate in said crotch area.
 2. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein said foot portion connected to each of said leg portions comprises a strap fixedly connected to opposed lateral sides of each leg portion, the strap of each leg portion being adapted to extend beneath the foot of the wearer.
 3. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein said foot portion connected to each of said leg portions is adapted to substantially cover the foot of a wearer''s leg, said foot portion being integrally connected to each leg portion and forming an extension thereof.
 4. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein each leg portion includes on its inside surface a pocket for receiving and releasably retaining an ice-hockey pad.
 5. The garment as defined in claim 1 wherein each leg portion includes on its inside surface a pocket for releasably receiving and retaining an ice-hockey pad, permitting ready insertion and removal of the pad interiorly of the leg portions of said garment adjacent the wearer''s leg and fastening means for adjustably fastening the pad in contact with a wearer''s leg.
 6. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein the pocket for releasably retaining a protective cup or plate is open along its top edge detachably connected to the front of the undergarment portion of said garment, said pocket having two elastic leg encircling straps attached thereto at its lower edge detachably connected at their ends remote fRom said pocket to the rear of said undergarment portion.
 7. A garment as defined in claim 1 wherein said pocket and straps are detachably connected with dome fasteners. 